Teaching school children about common mental health problems can
reduce prejudice and negative attitudes towards mental illness,
according to
a new
study published in the April issue of the
British Journal
of Psychiatry.
A group of researchers, led by Dr Paul Naylor
of the University of Sheffield, found that teenagers who received
just six lessons on mental health showed significantly more
sensitivity and empathy towards people with mental health problems.
The teenagers also used less negative language to describe mental
health problems.
The study followed 14- and 15-year-old pupils
at two secondary schools in London. At one school, the pupils
attended six 50-minute lessons on mental health issues common among
young people: stress, depression, suicide/self-harm, eating
disorders, being bullied and learning disabilities. The lessons
included discussion, role-playing and internet research, and pupils
were shown booklets, factsheets and films. Pupils at the other
school did not receive any of these lessons.
The week before the lessons began, pupils in
both schools completed questionnaires to determine their attitudes
towards mental illness. This was repeated eight months after the
lessons finished.
The lessons had a number of positive effects
on the pupils’ understanding of mental health problems. Both boys
and girls showed more understanding of why some people become
depressed or think life is not worth living, how bullied people are
affected etc. They were also more likely to be able to name five
mental health difficulties, and were less likely to use
stigmatising language such as ‘nutter’ or ‘got a screw loose’.
The researchers said: “Children learn from a
very early age that psychiatric problems are personal failures and
that children who receive psychological treatment are to be
despised.
“This study shows that teaching 14- and
15-year-olds about mental health difficulties helps to reduce
stigma by increasing knowledge and promoting positive attitudes.
Generally, participating pupils were positive about the importance
of lessons on mental health, and said they had learnt much about
the lesson topics.”